User blog:ClockworkFirefly/Who Could Have Been: Doctor Who
Saludos Perra-golpeadores! Today I come to you with a brand new series! Th- Oh like Film vs Film? Well I… and Ask the ERB Characters? I do think… and ERB Wiki: Bible Stories? OK I GET IT!! I know I haven’t been that good on schedules for different series and I usually end up putting them on indefinite hiatuses or ending them completely. This time however I have 101% confidence I will do regularly. My new series is called “Who Could Have Been”. Have you ever wondered who could have been cast in some of your favorites roles in TV and Film? Well, this series will tell all on who certain people would've been in such iconic roles! What is the purpose to this series? NONE! Why not start off Who Could Have Been with one of the most Who-y shows ever? Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? Nah, let’s just do Doctor Who The First Doctor Geoffrey Bayldon , Alan Webb , Cyril Cusack , and Leslie French turned down the role of the First Doctor before William Hartnell was cast. Hugh David was also considered by the production team, but vetoed by producer Verity Lambert as too young (He was in his late thirties at the time). The Second Doctor Rupert Davies, Michael Hordern , Valentine Dyall, and BRIAN BLESSED turned down the role of the Second Doctor. Patrick Troughton himself was said to be William Hartnell's preferred choice for replacement. The Third Doctor According to Jon Pertwee himself, he was number two on the shortlist of Third Doctor candidates. The first choice was Ron Moody , whom later regretted turning the role down. The Fourth Doctor Graham Crowden , who would later play Soldeed in The Horns of Nimon , turned down the role as he did not wish to commit himself to a long-term role, while Michael Bentine turned down the role when the production team felt he wanted too much influence over the series' scripts. Other actors offered included Bernard Cribbins and Fulton Mackay , who had previously played Dr. Quinn in Doctor Who and the Silurians. Richard Hearne was offered the role but his insistence that he play the part in the style of his 'Mr Pastry' character was not acceptable to the series' producer, Barry Letts. Jim Dale was the next candidate for the Fourth Doctor if Tom Baker declined the offer. The Fifth Doctor Richard Griffiths is probably the actor most often considered for the role of the Doctor who never went on to play the role –- he seems to have been on the shortlist for playing the Fifth and Seventh Doctors. He is popularly assumed to have been favourite for the role of Eighth Doctor had production of the show not ceased in 1989, as the next season would have been Sylvester McCoy's last. Iain Cuthbertson was also considered by John Nathan-Turner before the casting of Peter Davison. The Sixth Doctor The role of the Sixth Doctor was offered to Colin Baker without an audition. No auditions were held for the role, as Baker was the first choice. However, Martin Jarvis was considered as a backup option if Baker declined the role. The Seventh Doctor The Seventh Doctor role was eventually narrowed down to Sylvester McCoy, Dermot Crowley , and David Fielder as displayed in this video. Chris Jury , Andrew Sachs , and McCoy’s mentor Ken Campbell were also considered by the production team with Campbell being turned do for being too dark (ironic huh?) The Eighth Doctor Had the show continued past 1989, the producers were again considering Richard Griffiths for the role of the Eighth Doctor. In the early 1990s, the BBC approached Verity Lambert to revive the show. Lambert wanted Peter Cook to play the new Doctor at the time, but he eventually declined involvement During The '80s and The '90s there were many attempts to adapt the show for American audiences. One TV series idea would have featured Bill Cosby in the role, while a pitch for a movie included the Doctor being played by Michael Jackson (coincidentally, Bill Cosby would've been the next pick for the role if Jackson wasn't available). At some point, even Jim Carrey was considered. For the 1996 movie, Tim Curry was the first choice for the role of the Eighth Doctor who turned it down because of bad scheduling. Michael Crawford , Billy Connolly , Trevor Eve , Michael Palin , Robert Lindsay and Jonathan Pryce were all considered for the role of the Eighth Doctor. Palin was a strong frontrunner, but he didn't feel that he could do the role justice. Lindsay actually auditioned for the role, together with Anthony Head , Tim McInnerny , Tony Slattery , Liam Cunningham , Nathaniel Parker and Mark McGann before McGann’s brother Paul won the role. Christopher Eccleston and Peter Capaldi (who would later become the Ninth and Twelfth Doctor respectively) were offered to audition though both declined for different reasons. The Ninth Doctor When the show came back in 2005, Russell T. Davies offered the part of the Ninth Doctor to Hugh Grant and Bill Nighy before Christopher Eccleston was cast. Grant turned it down due to his doubts of the series succeeding (which he regretted later) and Nighy turned it down due to “too much baggage”. Judi Dench was suggested as a candidate for The Ninth Doctor by producer Jane Tranter while Alan Davies and Richard E. Grant were considered as backup options before Davies was able to convince Eccleston to take on the role. The Tenth Doctor David Tennant was always the first option to play The Tenth Doctor by Russell T. Davies, but he considered Eddie Izzard, David Walliams, and Chris Barrie in case Tennant would decline the offer. The Eleventh Doctor Steven Moffat’s first choice for The Eleventh Doctor was Chiwetel Ejiofor, but declined for unknown reasons. Paterson Joseph, David Harewood, Russell Tovey, and Sean Pertwee (son of Jon Pertwee) all auditioned for the role of The Eleventh Doctor with Russell Tovey being Russell T. Davies choice for Eleven along with Harry Lloyd. Ultimately, The Eleventh Doctor role was narrowed down to Matt Smith and James McAvoy before Smith was cast. Peter Capaldi was considered for the role of the Eleventh Doctor by Moffat, but he didn't feel the timing was right. He was Moffat's first choice for the role of the Twelfth Doctor. The Twelfth Doctor Ben Daniels was approached for the role of The Twelfth Doctor in case Capaldi turned out to be unavailable for the part. He was heavily rumored for the role before Capaldi’s casting along with Daniel Rigby and Rory Kinnear. The Thirteenth Doctor Jodie Whittaker was always Chris Chibnall’s first choice for the role of The Thirteenth Doctor. However, other actors auditioned for the role with one rumored to be Olivia Colman. Chibnall has stated that he always had a woman in mind for the role. Other Castings For some time it has been known that Elisabeth Sladen was not the first choice to play Sarah Jane Smith. A different actress was signed up, but it was felt that she wasn't suitable and the part was recast. The actress's identity was revealed in January 2012: April Walker. Russell T. Davies has mentioned several times that for characters he's created, he had specific actors in mind for them. One of them was wanting Helen Mirren for Adelaide Brooke in "The Waters of Mars". Lindsay Duncan did an amazing job, but could you imagine having Oscar-winning actors on Doctor Who? Kate Winslet was suggested for the role of River Song. Michelle Gomez could have played Ms. Delphox in "Time Heist", but she couldn't make the audition. As she explained it later, "I was moved to write to Steven Moffat saying I was such a huge fan and if in the future if he ever needed someone for a razor-cheek-boned villainess then it’s me." This led to her being cast as Missy, the Series 8 Big Bad who went on to be central to the Twelfth Doctor's Myth Arc. Epilogue At this moment, more installments are being written, so watch out for them! Ciao! Category:Blog posts